1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a hybrid vehicle. Specifically, the invention relates to a hybrid vehicle that includes an engine, a first motor capable of inputting and outputting power, a planetary gear connected to a first drive shaft coupled to a first axle, an output shaft of the engine, and a rotary shaft of the first motor such that three rotary elements are arranged in the order of the first drive shaft, the output shaft, and the rotary shaft in an alignment chart, a second motor capable of inputting and outputting the power to the first drive shaft, a third motor capable of inputting and outputting the power to a second drive shaft coupled to a second axle, and a battery capable of exchanging electric power with the first, second, and third motors.
2. Description of Related Art
Conventionally, as a vehicle of this type, there is proposed a vehicle that includes an engine, a first motor, a power distribution integration mechanism (planetary gear mechanism) having a ring gear, a carrier, and a sun gear that are connected to a drive shaft coupled to a front wheel, an output shaft of the engine, and a rotary shaft of the first motor, a second motor capable of inputting and outputting power to the drive shaft, a third motor capable of inputting and outputting the power to a rear wheel, and a battery capable of exchanging electric power with the first, second, and third motors (see, e.g. Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2006-248319 (JP 2006-248319 A)). In this vehicle, in accordance with whether or not there is the occurrence of a skid, whether or not the vehicle is starting or accelerating rapidly, and whether or not the vehicle is decelerating, a rear wheel required distribution ratio as the required value of the ratio of the torque of the rear wheel to the sum of the torque of the front wheel and the torque of the rear wheel is set, the front wheel torque and the rear wheel torque are set based on the set rear wheel required distribution ratio, and the engine, the first motor, the second motor, and the third motor are controlled such that the front wheel torque is output to the front wheel and the rear wheel torque is output to the rear wheel.